Google To Take Chrome Out Of Beta — Google vice president Marissa Mayer announced Google Chrome is coming out of beta in an interview with Michael Arrington at Le Web 08. The Google's open source browser has a number of eager customers, including OEMs who can't offer the browser until it is in full release.

2008 Year-End Google Zeitgeist — As the year comes to a close, it's time to look at the big events, memorable moments and emerging trends that captivated us in 2008. As it happens, studying the aggregation of the billions of search queries that people type into the Google search box gives us …

HP to offer 3-year laptop battery — A fast-charging laptop battery that promises to last at least three years without any degradation in performance is coming to the market as an option with Hewlett-Packard laptops. The Sonata battery is the product of three years of development work …

Verizon Aims for LTE Deployment in 2009 — Verizon Wireless expects to begin deploying next-generation LTE (Long-Term Evolution) wireless broadband within a year, a top executive of the carrier said Tuesday. — “We expect that LTE will actually be in service somewhere here in the U.S. probably …

Latest twist in Apple vs. Psystar — Mac clone maker Psystar has modified its counterclaim against Apple. Gone are the Clayton Act and Sherman Act antitrust claims, and in are sections that refute claims of violating the DMCA. — Psystar's latest counterclaim rests on two pillars:

Amazon EC2 Now Available In Europe — We learned something today: Amazon EC2 wasn't available in Europe up until today. That's news to us, because we thought it already was. Amazon Web Services just released a statement announcing that European developers and businesses can now run their Amazon EC2 instances locally.

Nortel Seeks Bankruptcy Advice — Nortel Networks Corp. has sought legal counsel to explore bankruptcy-court protection from creditors in the event that its restructuring plan fails, according to people familiar with the situation. The move comes as the Toronto-based company grapples …

VoIP on the iPhone Without Wi-Fi — TruPhone just last week released an iPod Touch application that allows for VoIP calls on the device using Wi-Fi and also has such an app for the iPhone. But this morning the company has pushed out an app that allows iPhone users to make VoIP calls on the cellular network.

Intel: We're on track for 32 nanometer manufacturing — Intel said Wednesday that it has completed the development phase of its next manufacturing process that will shrink chip circuits to 32 nanometers. — The milestone means that Intel will be able to push faster, more efficient chips starting in the fourth quarter.

Vint Cerf's Twitter account hacked, suspended for spam — It appears that Vint Cerf, the father of Internet who needs no introduction, has had his Twitter account compromised, with a multitude of spam messages posted on his behalf during the last 24 hours, all of which are redirecting to auction search sites …

Report: Yahoo investor urges Microsoft search deal — A major Yahoo shareholder is reportedly pushing for the company to renew discussion with Microsoft for a deal over its search business, CNBC reported Wednesday. — Ivory Investment Management, a hedge fund based in Los Angeles …